


The Dragon Mothers

by BoyMother



Category: No Fandom, Original Work
Genre: Alternate History, Alternate Universe - Magic, Anal Pregnancy, BoyMother, Dragon & Human Interactions, Dragon/Human Romance, Dragons, Egg Laying, Eggpreg, Eggs, Fluff and Smut, Gay, Human/Monster Romance, M/M, Mpreg, Multipairing, Pregnancy, Pregnant Sex, Size Difference, Some Plot, Story, Teratophillia, Transformation, Twinks, boy mothers, femboy, femboys
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-29
Updated: 2021-02-10
Packaged: 2021-03-15 04:01:37
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,828
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29057886
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BoyMother/pseuds/BoyMother
Summary: Mother Earth in all her time has produced only two ruling species: the humans and the dragons. Today the dragons are long passed away and the humans think themselves the sole inheritors of the Earth. It has been this way for a very long time. The story told here is that of the very beginning and end of the Human Era. It begins with the death of the Ancient Dragon Era, when seeds for the prophesied New Dragon Era were planted in five human males. These five acolytes, collectively named the “Dragon Mothers,” are charged with the immense historical task of ensuring the resurrection of dragonkind. This is the story of them and their dragon lovers.
Comments: 16
Kudos: 40





	1. Introduction

Mother Earth in all her time has produced only two ruling species: the humans and the dragons. Today the dragons are long passed away and the humans think themselves the sole inheritors of the Earth. It has been this way for a very long time. The story told here is that of the very beginning and end of the Human Era. It begins with the death of the Ancient Dragon Era, when seeds for the prophesied New Dragon Era were planted in five human males. These five acolytes, collectively named the “Dragon Mothers,” are charged with the immense historical task of ensuring the resurrection of dragonkind. This is the story of them and their dragon lovers.

The council of four generally referred to itself as “The Council.” There were many councils over the course of the Ancient Dragon Era, each made up of dragons of the highest status and power for their time. Council dragons appeared to their own kind as kings and to the still primal humans as gods. The self-appointed duty of the councils was to rule the Earth, a job taken quite seriously by dragonkind. For millennia the rule of dragon councils seemed to be the immutable order of the world, but by the time of the council of four, no one had any doubts about its impermanence. They would the last of the dragon councils, making their job quite a bit more difficult. Their final act would be to navigate the end of the Ancient Era in hopes that the prophecy for a new era of dragons would come to be. 

In the vast celestial palace of Huangdi, four dragons met to make their plans for this task. Historically this council is known as the council of four, but such a name would have been considered an insult at the time. The dragon councils at their peak were made up of hundreds of dragons from every part of the globe. Those congresses of the past made the council of four a seem a measly handful in comparison. The empty palace was a reminder of how far they had fallen, of their humiliating defeat.

All the elements, earth, water, fire, air, light, and dark, had once been the domain of the dragons. Long before the council of four was formed, humans had won the right to rule the element of earth. Dragons had underestimated humans, a species they thought of as primitive and bound to the mud like any other of their subjects. Thanks to the arrogance of dragonkind, humanity took dominion over the element of earth for itself. Of course, to have their total authority challenged by such puny creatures was a grave insult to the dragons. Though any conflict over elemental governance did ultimately cease and the other five elements remained firmly in the grip of the dragons, the seeds of the dragons’ ultimate demise were sown in this time.  
How easily the lessons of history are forgotten. As time passed since humanity claimed earth as their own, dragonkind settled once again into arrogance. They ruled like gods, some in decadence, some in cruelty, all utterly uncomprehending of any challenge to their authority. All the while humanity advanced. Human civilizations arose and spread everywhere there was land. Their language, culture, knowledge, and might came to rival that of the dragons. It was only a matter of time until some people somewhere grew restless of life under dragonic tyranny. It started with a few isolated rebellions, a few weaker dragons slain. This was the only spark needed to ignite the whole world into war. Humanity everywhere soon joined in the revolt against their utterly unprepared dragon overlords. This war is perhaps the greatest of all wars in all of history. It would wreck immense destruction and loss on both species. Humanity would be thrown back into the dark ages. All their great civilization razed to the ground, leaving only a few scattered strongholds to rebuild. But the cost to the dragons was far greater. Dragonkind was unprepared for war. They were not adaptable, they were hardly united, and they were willfully ignorant of humanity’s capabilities. What they thought would be an easy suppression of impudent radicals turned into a bloody war taking many dragon lives. Dragons cannot reproduce their kind as easy as humans and their numbers plummeted over the centuries-long war. In the end, though human kingdoms were almost all turned to rubble, only a handful of dragons remained. Facing total extinction, they were forced to retreat from the domain of humans. The war was over and humanity had won its liberation. 

Of the remaining dragons, only four would survive long enough to make up the final dragon council. They met as the last members of a vanishing species, all of them keenly aware that it would only be a matter of time before the tenacious humans rebuilt their civilizations to their former might. So their task was clear, they had to negotiate the end of their era and sow the seeds of a new one. And to them an ancient prophecy of divine nature was revealed for guidance.

Huangdi, the eldest of the four and thus the leader, floated in the air at one end of the immense stone table. The table also floated weightlessly in the center of an enormous sphere decorated in gold and jewels of all kinds. Large as a human castle and ornately carved with images of glorious dragon history, this historic place had been used by all preceding councils. It seemed even larger now without a crowd of dragons to fill it. Huangdi’s head stayed fixed in place while his long body danced in the air behind him, making graceful loops and curls around itself. His scales glittered like gold and silver. He was the image of dragonic majesty, a true patrician of the Lightscales. He had lived during the peak of dragon empire and took great pride in knowing the rituals and rules of that era. He tried in vain to continue the great traditions, but he was alone in this. Apophis was the only dragon old enough to remember the high times, and Apophis certainly wasn’t going to learn manners of any sort. His shining antlers, gossamer mane, his winding body of the lung dragon kind were all magnificent and splendorous, but they were lonely also. Huangdi was the last living symbol of his kind’s glorious legacy.  
“We begin this meeting of the high dragon council in the days of iron,” he spoke in a voice as powerful and commanding as his image, “under the second moon and towards the-”  


“Enough with your rituals,” A shrieking roar cried out from across the vast table, “You still want us to lay down and die like dogs, don’t you? At least spare us the theatrics.” It was Apophis, protesting as usual. The colossal black serpent opposite Huangdi was even larger than the golden lung, and nearly as old too. There were few further similarities between the two however. Apophis was the last of the Darkscales and in even desperate times such as this, his feud with Huangdi persisted. He was not the image of draconic majesty but of brutal savagery. His long limbless body was blacker than the night, reflecting only a few shimmering bands of dusky purple. He floated in the air with the rest of them but did not move. He held perfectly still, burning red eyes focused on Huangdi like a snake ready to strike.  
“There is no more council. You have no authority anymore.” He hissed, flashing the sharp and intricate pattern of his fully-extended hood.  
“Yet here you are as I requested.” Huangdi responded calmly.  
Any being attuned to the draconic auras would feel the sizzle of Apophis’s anger spread through the room like a heatwave.  
“Only to curse you for surrendering us all to a tribe of lowly mammals! You don’t have the guts to fight.”  


“Apophis, please. You throw the same tantrum every time we meet. You know the prophecy as well as any of us. If you're going to defy it, go ahead and do it on your own.” A third voice entered from another quadrant of the table. Another dragon, Cetus, eyed Apophis with annoyance. He was an impressive specimen of the seascales and, of course, the last of them as well. His neck, limbs, and tail protruded out of an enormous shell covered in plant and coral growths. Though his turtle-like appearance was ostensibly ancient, he was a few centuries younger than Huangdi and Apophis. Old enough to have reached seniority, but too young to have earned the right to interrupt elder dragons of the council in normal times. But they were not in normal times and this was not a normal council. Decorum and ritual had passed away like the rest of their species.  
“Shut your jaws! Disrespectful little fish.” Apophis hissed, “I thought you were against this suicide plan? Or have you lost even the little spine that you had?”  
“Feral bastard.” Cetus muttered, not loud enough to start a real fight, but enough to protect his pride. He turned to Huangdi instead, “He is right though. While I trust your judgement, I do not know why we must take such extreme measures. Atlantis is prospering, they would never revolt.”  
“I know you are proud of your little islands, Cetus.” Huangdi said, ever patient, “but you cannot be so sure. We were also proud and confident before the war, you know.”  
“Yes. Right.” Cetus understood the wisdom, but he didn’t like it.  


“So they kill us all eventually, so what? We can at least have little fun before that. Hell, we can still do your little reincarnation ritual, just a few centuries down the road. No reason why we gotta do it so soon.” The final dragon at the table was Dreq, a smaller stocky dragon of the firescales. The only dragon alive born during the war, he had little knowledge or interest in the past. The world now was the only world he’d ever known. He didn’t care much how the species lived or died, so long as he got to have his pleasures.  
“Try not to be so self-centered.” Huangdi said, “I remind you that this plan is not _my_ will, it is divine prophecy. I am merely making the arrangements. We should consider ourselves lucky, we will be the founders of a new era. Follow the plan and history will be at our command. But if you insist, you may leave this council and live as you please until the humans extinguish you. The rest of us will make history without you.”  
The others were silent. Apophis glared, Cetus frowned, and Dreq stared, but none made any further protests. Displeased as they might be, insignificance was the greatest fear of all dragons. To be a dragon was to be feared and worshiped, to pursue power and status relentlessly. Faced with a choice between being the founder of a new world or a footnote at the death of an old one, any sensible dragon would take the former.  


____

____

__“Given all the resistance, I suspect you all have not selected mates?”  
“Mating with humans… how could you possibly expect us to lower ourselves to that level?”  
“Again, Apophis, this is not my plan. It is the divine will. I take it you haven’t found yours then?”  
“No. Forgive me, oh great one. I am reluctant to breed with vermin.”  
“Would you prefer to be killed by vermin?”  
“No. I would not.” Apophis’s words dripped with contempt.  
“I have a quite suitable human selected and the arrangements have been made.” Cetus chimed in proudly.  
“Good, good. And you Dreq?”  
“I’ll find one… eventually. What does it matter, so long as they’re sturdy.”  
“You’ll need a partner you can trust. I thought that much was obvious.”  
“Alright, alright, don’t get huffy about it. I’ll get one, don’t worry.”  
Huangdi surveyed the three dragons around him. He could have asked for a better party to restart dragon civilization with, but these were the cards dealt. He would have to make it work, even if it meant dragging them all along behind him.  
“What about the hatchling? In the west?” Cetus asked.  
“Oh yes, I haven’t forgotten about him. When he is of age I will personally explain everything. He will also select a mate and join us in the reincarnation ritual.”  
“A mere hatchling?” Apophis balked.  
“We will need all the dragons alive. We should be happy there is one more to join us.”  
It would be a council of five come time for the reincarnation ritual. Such a dismal number. If everything worked and they came out the other side intact, they would still have a difficult task in restarted dragonkind from such a small population. Of course, it wouldn’t be entirely dragonkind anymore. Huangdi was aware of what this plan would do to their lineage. He wondered if the others had thought that far ahead.  
“So when do we gotta get a mate by anyways?” Dreq said.  
“Ah, I’m glad you asked, deadlines are important!” Huangdi said as he pulled his notes out to consult, “you and Apophis and myself must select mates by the days of sea, if we are to conduct the ritual by the days of earth next cycle.”  
“The days of earth? That’s so soon! I’ll have hardly enjoyed maturity by then!” Dreq said, wings unfurling with alarm.  
“You could have let us know earlier that we would be throwing our lives away so soon.” Apophis said.  
“This is NOT a suicide pact, Apophis. You wouldn’t be here if you truly believed that. It is the last hope of dragonkind. You will all be prepared by the days of earth or you will have no part in the new age. That is final.” Huangdi let the golden shine of his intensify to a brilliant light that flooded the enormous chamber. The other dragons recoiled from the rays. It was a simple gesture of his power. A reminder of why _HE_ was in charge and not them.  
“Now, with that settled, since you all have expressed little respect for ritual, I suppose we can unceremoniously end this council meeting.”  
“Please. I have humans to terrorize.”  
Huangdi scowled at Apophis’s comment. He knew full well what Apophis was up to in his corner of the world. It was risky and stupid to act like a tyrant just after the humans had proven themselves more than capable of overthrowing tyrants. But he did not interfere.They each had their isolated pockets of humanity, and so long as they stayed the course towards the reincarnation ritual, he let them do as they please. But he allowed himself a grudge against the sun-swallower of the Darkscales at least.  
“I’ll take my leave as well, I have a princess to return too.”  
“Ah yea, that pretty little pet of yours. I bet that’s the mate you've picked, isn’t it?” Dreq teased Cetus.  
“You will find out in due time, Firescale.”  
“We will all meet again here with our humans when preparations have been made. From there the real work begins.” Huangdi announced._ _

__

__

______And so the council of four left the sanctum and scattered back to their homes across the globe. Despite his confidence in the prophecy, he had his doubts like all the others. If they messed this up, they could be willfully ending their own lives and making sure there was no chance of bringing the species back at all. He was not even sure that the breeding would be successful. It worked on paper, yes. He’d been over the magic of it a thousand times. Still, breeding with humans had never been done before. On top of that the incubation period would be potentially far longer than even dragon eggs could last. But what other choice did they have? Even if they increased their numbers ten-fold by the time humanity climbed back to their civilizational peak, it wouldn’t be enough to withstand an assault. Humans lived and died so quickly, but because of it they could easily outpace the previous rulers of the earth. Of course, there was no guarantee humanity would be any different even after the reincarnation, but Huangdi had strong faith in at least that part of the plan. Unlike the others, he saw potential in the busy little mammals. Not just potential for destruction, as they’d demonstrated in the war, but potential in culture, technology, wisdom and heart. He still had to overcome his prejudiced impulses towards the species that had been ingrained deep within dragonkind before the war but he believed a future of union between the species was possible._ _ _ _ _ _

______His belief was right, of course. It would be a mere ten individuals that would accomplish this historic union. The last five dragons and their human lovers._ _ _ _ _ _


	2. Quetzal and Chimal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Quetzal was ready to insist that he at least give it some thought. To emphasize just how big a decision this was, just how much he was asking of him. But the look in Chimal’s emerald eyes communicated everything. His resolve was firm. He really was going to be his mate and go through this with him no matter what."

Quetzal had never been particularly in love with long mountain hikes, but he was starting to enjoy them more and more once he’d started letting Chimal take the lead. The human boy led the way up the cliffside path while he effortlessly drifted through the air behind him. Chimal loved the scenery in the mountains surrounding the village. Verdant edifices, curling rivers, and windswept plateaus as far as the eye could see. It was a beautiful land, though Quetzal was enjoying a different view. For the hours they hiked, he would spend the time gazing at Chimal’s backside. The boy’s wide hips and well-muscled thighs and full buttocks beat out a mountain top view any day. His legs looked so strong as they tirelessly pushed him further uphill, plump muscles at work under his warm brown skin, creating the shallow grooves down which the occasional bead of sweat would slip down. He had the legs of a mountain explorer, a creature of the earth. His capable legs conquered all manner of dirt and rock and mud and yet never became hard and rough like the other men of the village. The softness of his thighs never faded. His ass, only barely concealed by a parcel of green yuca cloth wrapped around his waist, had a womanly curve and heft that bounced with his hip-swaying gait. Quetzal could have written poetry about just his butt if he ever cared to write poetry. 

Neither of them knew it, but Chimal’s body appealed to Quetzal so much likely because it was the dragon’s power that had been subtly molding it ever since they were young. Chimal’s birth had coincided with Quetzal’s hatching, and the two were raised together as nestmates. Chimal had his mother and father, of course, while Quetzal was raised by the village shaman and their servants, but the two spent as much time as possible together. To grow up as a dragon’s best friend made Chimal the object of subconscious draconic magic flowing from Quetzal’s desires. As a young boy he grew fast and sturdy to run and play and wrestle with his winged serpent friend. He retained his boyishness until maturity, and in the years since then he had blossomed into a strange mixture of gender. In many ways he was still boyishly cute, but the way his curves had grown resembled more like the child-bearing woman of the village than any of the men. It was an appropriate form… no not just appropriate, it was the perfect form. Chimal was perfect for the task. Quetzal had known this ever since Huangdi had first informed him of his destiny.  
“East at the river fork? Or west?” Chimal said, interrupting his companion's lusty daydreams.  
“East! A little further ahead and then east. Shouldn’t be too much farther.”  
“Sure you don’t wanna lead the way? I don’t know where I’m going!”  
“Oh but I like to follow you, Chichi.”  
Chimal shot a playfully scolding look with hands on his hips.  
“Keep going, I’m sure you’ll like it!” Quetzal said, urging the wind to nudge him uphill, flinging his dark hair all about his head.  
“Alright alright. Don’t blow me off the mountainside, horndog.” 

They’d been on adventures like this together ever since Chimal was old enough to leave the village. Exploring the mountains, getting pleasantly lost for days, talking for hours, wrestling in fields of soft grass, foraging for fruit, fishing, sleeping under the stars. The world was a gift all their own when they were away from nagging mystics in the village. Eventually, they would find their way back home and Chimal would be lectured for days about “leading the sacred son astray.” But it was never long before they disappeared into the wild again, and not even the strictest shaman’s really tried to stop them.  
But this particular adventure was different. It was only a moon ago that Huangdi, the ancient foreign dragon that was Quetzal’s only real connection with his species, had paid him another visit. He’d told him that the time of the ritual was fast approaching and urged him to select a mate. So although he’d never once imagined his mate would be anyone but Chichi, now came the time to actually pop the question.  
In truth, Quetzal was not eager to go along with the plans of foreign dragons he hardly knew. He might have preferred to live out his life in the village without ever meeting Huangdi or the others. Quetzal was an odd dragon in that he was really much more of a human. His Windscale ancestors had long had ties to the little village nestled in between mountains. When war came, they kept the village safe from the chaos and destruction wrought by human empires and foreign dragons. By the end of the war, the Windscales of the mountain village had all given their lives for this cause. Quetzal’s egg was all that was left of them. When he hatched years after the war, he was raised by the villagers as ‘the sacred son.’ He’d grown up with human caretakers, human friends, eating human food, speaking human language, and living among them. If it weren’t for Huangdi, he wouldn’t have known anything about dragons at all beyond the village’s storybook myths. So it was only natural that he felt no personal stake in ‘the resurrection of the species and the birth of a new dragon era,” as Huangdi put it. Not that he was given a choice. Huangdi had been visiting him and insisting upon his participation in the grand plan ever since he was old enough to flap his wings. But whatever angst he had about it was outweighed by his elation at the thought that Chimal would do it with him...as his mate. Just the thought made his feathers twitch with excitement.  
Of course, Chimal might say no. He really really really hoped he wouldn’t… but… giving what he was asking, it would be understandable. He tried to shake the anxious thoughts. No point in worrying about it until he actually had an answer. So he went back to watching Chichi’s ass. 

Eventually, they did make it to Quetzal’s surprise. The path turned out to be a little difficult for a human incapable of flight, but with a little help, Chimal managed to descend down into a rocky little valley surrounded on all sides by towering peaks. Near the bottom of the valley they came upon a humble little opening, barely larger than Quetzal’s wingspan.  
“You’re right. I’ve never been here before… but uh… I don’t see what’s so impressive? It's a cave. We have those at home.”  
“It’s what’s inside the cave, dummy. Here, come on.” Quetzal gently wrapped his talon’s around Chimal’s arms and provided enough lift to help him descend into the cave without lifting him fully from the ground. It was a technique they’d done plenty of times before on steep terrain. Chimal felt lighter than air as he took big long floating bounds from one foothold to the next, aided by his best friend above. Together they moved in perfect unison all the way down, until Quetzal’s feathered tail slipped into the darkness of the cave and they reached the bottom. Chimal’s eyes were still adjusting to the low light when his foot touched down at the bottom with a splash.  
“Water?” He could now see the bottom of the cave, dimly lit by the few rays of sun that could penetrate the darkness. There was a pool of still water here, so pristine that he wouldn’t have known it was there had he not stepped in it and sent ripples across the surface.  
“Our own little private swimming spot, I thought.” Quetzal said, settling down on the dry stone in the middle of the pool, “You probably can’t see as well as I can, sorry.”  
“Aw don’t apologize! This place is awesome!” Chimal said, getting a better look as his eyes fully adjusted. The light filtered down in visible rays, just barely illuminating the smooth stone at the bottom. A cozy little hole in the ground, just big enough for Quetzal to stretch out the full length of his serpentine body. It felt so private, so hidden away. For a moment a fantasy flashed through his mind of him and Quetzal making a home here. They could build a door at the cavemouth and bring in torches and a little stove for cooking. They could sleep on the island in the center of the pool. Every day they would wake up and adventure in the mountains, visiting the village when they wished, and returning home to their cozy cave home to sleep.

He dipped his foot into the water. Its surprising and pleasant warmth beckoned him to venture further in. So in his typical carefree and energetic nature, Chimal turned back and walked a bit up the slope to the cave mouth, before running back down and launching his body into the pool. The crash of his landing echoed all around the cavern as he sank down into the darkness of the pool. He could not see very well under the water, but the pool’s depth extended tens of yards below him. There was probably nothing but more lifeless stone at the bottom, but his imagination conjured up fantastic fish and monsters swimming up from the dark depths to greet him with fearsome toothy grins. Not that he was afraid. If any creature dared to try and harm him, Quetzal was there to defend him. He was untouchable with his dragon companion by his side. More than one Jaguar had learned this lesson in their past adventures.  
He reemerged at the surface and grinned big at Quetzal, “Come on! Get in!” He said.  
"I don’t want my feathers all wet, I just watch you for now.”  
“Aw, come on! We haven’t wrestled underwater in a while.”  
“We aren’t children anymore, Chichi.”  
“Exactly! I’ve got man muscles now, I think I could beat you this time!” He punctuated his challenge with a splash of water that hit Quetzal right in the face.  
“Oh I’ll show you, pipsqueak!” 

With a single graceful flap of his wings, Quetzal lifted up and dove into the pool, wings folded tightly against his form as his long body slipped below the surface. Chimal tried to keep track of where he was under him, but he moved nearly as quickly in the water as he did in the air. The distracting flurry of colors from his feathers and the low light made it impossible to keep up with his movements. He could only tread water trying to spot Quetzal’s head before- “Bloop!” Talons gripped his leg and yanked him below the surface. The two of them sunk deeper, tangled with each other underwater, which consisted mostly of Chimal flailing about, grabbing a tuft of feathers here or a talon there, while Quetzal skillfully turned his human boy about in the water, getting in a playful headbutt or a sneaky butt rub where he could. Human and Dragon thrashed about in the water, playing as intimately as any pair of human boys would. It wasn’t much of a real contest of strength, but more of a contest of Chimal's slipperiness. The days when he could win these little matches had passed years ago when Quetzal had his first growth spurt. He didn’t mind at all though. He liked being grabbed and pinned by his friend, perhaps even a little more than he should. And Quetzal rarely passed up a chance to get his hands on Chimal’s body. 

When Chimal was too tired out to continue, they crawled up onto the island and lay next side by side, letting their respective hair and feathers dry out while Chimal caught his breath. They gazed at each other, then looked away, then gazed at each other once again and stayed that way for a long time. Chimal’s dark hair was already beginning to return to its fluffy waves after being drenched. His heavily lashed eyes, the same deep color as the moss growing in patches around the pool, gazed at Quetzal with deep affection. From his own perspective, Chimal saw the snake-like head of his friend, crowned in feathers of red, purple, and gold. It was a fearsome visage to many, meant to be venerated, but to Chimal it was as familiar and comforting as the face of any childhood friend. It was in this moment of mutual gazing that Quetzal swallowed his anxiety and asked,  
“Chimal, I have something to ask you.”  
“Oh?”  
“It’s… kind of a big deal.”  
“I see.”  
“Are you ready for something like that?”  
“I won’t know until you ask me, silly. Just spit it out.” He offered a reassuring smile.  
“Well, you know I’m supposed to leave… to go do whatever ritual with whatever other dragons and stuff, right?”  
Chimal sat up, “Yea. But that’s not for a while, right? You’re not leaving now, are you?”  
“No, not now. Huangdi says I have a little more time… but… it's coming up. I’m gonna have to go soon.”  
“I see.”  
There was a moment of silence as the two contemplated being apart, then swiftly decided against it.  
“But I was thinking… hoping that you...would come with me?”  
Chimal grinned even wider than before, “Oh? And how would I do that?”  
“I have to bring a mate. A human mate. And... I want you to be my mate, Chimal.”  
Chimal reached a hand out, rubbing the dragon’s bottom jaw. Quetzal’s favorite spot to have stroked.  
“And I want to be your mate too. I’m happy to, Quetzal.”  
Quetzal plumage stood on end, “Really?! That’s… that’s great! But I haven’t even told you about what that means? I mean, I'm happy- but, it’s a lot more than what you think. I want-”  
“Quetzal, I already know! Everyone in the village knows! We’ve been waiting for you to pick a mate for forever now.”  
“What?! Everyone? How?! Only the shamans are supposed to-”  
“Oh come on, its a small village, you know how rumors travel. Did you honestly think no one would know? It’s the most interesting thing to happen around here in ages!”  
“Jeeze… you humans have no respect for privacy.” Quetzal flicked his tail, a definite tell of mild annoyance.  
“Oh come on, like you aren’t basically a human too.”  
“I’m not.” Quetzal opened his mouth and let his fangs, each one the length of Chimal’s forearm, unfold, sticking his forked tongue out with them to emphasize the point.  
Chimal laughed, “Ha! I’m just glad you finally asked. I mean, everyone knew it was gonna be me. It was just a matter of time until you got the guts.”  
“You knew all this time?”  
“Yup.”  
“You knew it was gonna be you?”  
“Yup! Who else, buddy?”  
“Yeah, it's true. Never even considered anyone else. So, you know everything?”  
“Eh, not everything. Word gets around but...details and stuff get lost. And all this dragon stuff is beyond me. But Quetzal, no matter what, I wanna be with you. I want to be your mate. Nothing is gonna change that.”  
Quetzal was ready to insist that he at least give it some thought. To emphasize just how big a decision this was, just how much he was asking of him. But the look in Chimal’s emerald eyes communicated everything. His resolve was firm. He really was going to be his mate and go through this with him no matter what.  
“I like you a lot, Chichi.”  
“Haha, I like you too, buddy.”  
“Want me to tell you about it? So you know what you’re in for?”  
“I do. But on the way home. Sun will soon and I don’t wanna be doing those mountain trails in the dark.”  
“I could just fly you, you know. I can always fly you… my mate.”  
“My mate? Ha! Oh god, you are corny.”  
“Hey! I was just trying it out!”  
“Let’s go home. I’ll let you fly me, just this once.”  
“Awww, Is Chichi still scared?”  
“You dropped me once!”  
“From like ten feet up!”  
“It hurt!”  
“I was just a hatchling!”

The pair playfully argued all the way back to the village. Perhaps never before had there been such a closeness between a dragon and a human. Their love was a good sign of what was to come. Over the next few days, Quetzal would explain and re-explain exactly what was required of the Dragon Mothers, as Huangdi had explained it to him. Chimal had a foggy idea of what the dragon's ritual meant from the mystics and it certainly was a daunting mission. But he didn't sway in his resolve for a second. He would be Quetzal, of that he was certain. Their love for each other came easily. 

For the rest of the council, the four others in want of human mates, would have a far more difficult time finding love.


	3. Dreq and George

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“I know, I know. Dragon with a human mate, seems weird doesn’t it? A little insulting for me, especially. But it’s not my choice, believe me.”  
>  “Your mate?! You want me to be your mate?!” He was indignant. The mate of some church-invading animal? It was an absurd thought.  
> “Hey boy, you can be my bitch or my lunch. Your choice.”  
>  ___

Unlike the other members of the council, Dreq did not have a special village of reverent humans or a protected domain of his own. Dreq hatched alone after the decimation of the entire firescale lineage. As a hatchling he lived like wild animal. He learned to survive. It certainly got easier once he had achieved maturity and came into his draconic might, but life for him was still tougher than it was for other dragons. Like most firescales, he was born and lived in the heart of Europe, where some of the bloodiest conflict with humans had occurred in the war. Few places could claim the same fervor and effectiveness in slaying dragons as the small northern continent. Dreq had lived with the threat of powerful human armies and hunters looming over him his whole life. He did not have the luxury of basking in the fading memory of the old age (which was ancient history to him anyways) like Huangdi. Nor could he glare down at humanity with distant spiteful arrogance like Apophis. He had no time for such things. He had to survive. It made him more like the dragons that preceded even the old age, the earliest dragons. He was crafty and cunning, savage and individualistic. He lived for his own survival. Once he’d secured that, he cared for little beyond his own hedonistic pleasure. 

At first he had wanted to turn Huangdi’s proposal down flatly. He’d had no interest in bringing about the “new dragon age.” He couldn’t care less about the old one! And he certainly didn’t want to sacrifice his own hide for it.  
But Huangdi, while polite and civilized, was not intent on allowing refusal. And he’d helped Dreq out of a bind too many times to ignore completely. So Dreq heard him out, and through a combination of threats about what would happen if he stayed behind (he knew better than perhaps anyone what humans could do, and how fast they would rebuild) and promises of the pleasures of a new era, he was convinced. He would go along with things as Huangdi wanted, but he had his reservations. After all, mating with humans? It was an absurd idea. 

Just the thought of Huangdi’s long lectures about “our special place in the grand arch of history” was exhausting. And he was hungry. Fortunately, he was in a position to solve that problem quite easily.  
“Hey! You!” He called out to the Human he kept around for times like this.  
“Yes! Sir! What um...what do you need now?” The gaunt-faced peasant said, leaping off the pew on which he had been dozing off.  
“I’m hungry. Bring me another swine.”  
He growled and belched out a column of thick black smoke that swirled around his head, its inky black fog decorated by the red shine of his eyes and scales, before dissipating up into the rafters. Appearances were important to keep up constantly in a con like this. This was one of his favorite tricks to pull, though. It took just the right kind of superstitious little peasant village and some luck, but it meant he wouldn’t have to hunt for himself for a long while. He was currently resting on top of the crushed altar in a small wooden church. It was once the place of worship for the farming peasants in the nearby village, before he took it over. It had been a long time since dragons populated the region. Humans still remembered their rule in the cities, but in the fringes of the countryside history and myth had mingled in their long absence. Without historians and record-keepers, much was forgotten. A clever huckster like Dreq could take advantage of that relative ignorance. It went about the same way every time. He’d drop down into the town square, burn a few buildings, terrorize a few farmers, and with the right language and performance, he'd had the whole village believing he was not a dragon, but an unholy immortal demon from hell. And as a Demon, he could unleash a terrible army of hell and plagues and curses upon the land if his demands were not met. And he razed another barn or two to the ground to make his point.  
If his performance was good enough, a terrified and pious populace would meet his demands. In this case, he’d taken over their church. Not only did it lend shelter from the harsh winter snow, but it added to the act as well. Villagers brought him livestock when he wanted and he even got a modest hoard out of it.

“Oh, and this? Have you got any more of this?” He said, carefully plucking a shiny goblet up from his modest pile of treasures with his claws.  
“A cup, sir?” The peasant man said.  
“No not a cup, idiot. The metal.”  
“Ah… it is… bronze, I believe, sir.”  
“Oh, I see. What about gold? Do you have any gold?”  
“...in this village, sir? N-no, no gold, I’m afraid.”  
“Ah, damn. Well, bring me something bronze then. And a swine. And quickly! Or I will curse your village for eight generations! ” He spat a small scarlet flame out of his mouth with every word, ending in a magnificent crescendo of flame. The man was stumbling out the door without a moment’s hesitation.  
Dreq was left to lay on his altar and nap, waiting for supper to be delivered. 

Of course, eventually, the villagers would wise up or a military regiment on patrol would pass through. Dreq was a mighty creature with extraordinary abilities, but he entertained no delusions of invincibility. He knew engaging humans was risky, even for the strongest of dragons, which he was not. When the jig was up, he would hightail it far away and spend a little time in the wilderness while things settled. If he was lucky, he could be pulling the same tricks in a different village in just a few decades. 

He was not allowed to nap very long before he was awoken just a few minutes later by the chill of winter slipping in as the door was opened.  
“Back already? You better not have forgotten my-“  
“Your game is up, beast!”  
Dreq raised his head to see that it was not his errand running peasant that had entered. It was a very distinctive looking human boy. He was dressed in monk’s robes, tied at the waist with coarse rope. His skin was frightfully pale, and his hair was the color of white ash. It was a human that Dreq had become quite familiar with, unfortunately.  
Dreq dug his claws into the floorboards. Just when he wanted to relax this sanctimonious prick had to show up. What was his name again? Grayson? Gregor?  
“I am George of the one true and holy faith! I walk in the light of the lord and call for his protection as I banish you from this church and this land, deceiving beast!”  
Ah, George. That was it. The awful monk boy. He’d been living in the church before Dreq took over. Not a day went by now without some disturbance from him. Sometimes he would shout scripture in through windows, other times he would attempt exorcisms. He never seemed to run out of religious fervor and determination, which he trotted out daily to accomplish nothing but piss off the dragon. Honestly, Dreq avoided killing humans when he could. Things usually went smoother without unnecessary bloodshed. But this boy was tempting his violent instincts sorely. And from what he’d seen, the other villagers didn’t like him much either. He was a preachy little wimp who never knew when to shut up. His strange coloring and orphan status already made him a bit of an outsider, he wasn’t helping his case with his ridiculous pompous religiosity. They probably wouldn’t care too much if he became a dragon’s lunch.  
“Silence Mortal!” Dreq bellowed, putting on his scary demon act, “you stand before a great prince of hell! Bow before me and leave, or I will open the earth and let you fall into eternal flames below!” He felt particularly proud of that line, and fully expected George to turn away and leave him alone. The boy stayed though, seemingly undaunted.  
“I SAID your game is up, dragon!”  
Uh oh. So the boy knew.  
“What did you say, human?”  
“I said dragon! You are a dragon! Not a demon! Not a prince of hell! Just an earthly MORTAL beast!”  
“You little shit.” Dreq said, dropping the demon act.  
“At first, I looked through the theological texts to find any information on big scaly fire demons. But instead, I found historical accounts of the dragons! Apparently, there used to be quite a lot of your wicked kind.”  
Dreq growled, quite fed up with this overconfident little mammal. He only let him give his haughty little speech because he wanted to know how he was found out. What holes he needed to plug next time around.  
“But you were vanquished by humanity and the God on our side!”  
Dreq had his doubts that this boy’s god had anything to do with the decline of his species.  
“And now I am here to finish the job. You aren’t a powerful demon. You're just a beast. A killable beast. So in the name of the Lord, I tell you to abandon this holy place and never return!”  
“Or what, runt?”  
“Isn’t it obvious?” The boy said with a smug expression, “or I’ll tell everyone in this village and the next that you aren’t a supernatural demon, and we will hunt you down and vanquish you once and for all!”  
The threat was real. If this boy was a little smarter, he’d might have actually succeeded. Yet instead he shows up alone and boldly announces his plan. Was this a trick? Or was he just that stupid? Dreq’s own ruby red eyes stared deep into the boy’s pinkish-red ones, trying to detect any deception. All he saw was an overconfident zealot.  
“I think you wanted to play hero a bit too badly,” he said with a toothy grin, “now that you’ve told me your plan, why should I let you continue breathing, hmm?”  
All boldness dropped from the boy’s expression. He took a step backwards, clutching the prayer beads around his neck.  
“If you kill me, people will find out! They’ll come here...and avenge me! If you want to live...I suggest you leave this place...n-now…”  
“You don’t sound so confident anymore.” Dreq raised himself to his feet, spreading his wings till the top claws scratched the ceiling. He was on the small size for a dragon and he still took up almost half the little church. He stepped towards George.  
“S-stop! I walk with the Lord! I am protected!” He said. Though he nonetheless began to walk backwards towards the entrance of the church.  
“Are you sure?” Dreq said, snapping his jaws.

The boy turned and ran. He had no hope of escape though. Before he even reached the door, Dreq spit a fireball that soared over his head and burst in front of him. The force of the explosion knocked him on his back, stunning him. Dreq loomed over him, his tail waving back and forth like a cat playing with an unlucky mouse.  
“I’ll be honest with you, I don’t really like the taste of humans and you seem especially lean and stringy, but you leave me no choice.” He opened his jaws wide and went in for the killing bite. It would be sudden, swift, and carnal. 

George could see dagger sized teeth inches from his face and could smell the smokey breath of the dragon when suddenly Dreq stopped. An idea had occurred to him at the very last moment. Huangdi had been pestering him an awful lot lately about finding a human mate, just as much as he’d been putting it off. Now he had a human dropped right in his maw that he had to do something with. Wouldn’t it be funny to make this self-righteous runt bear his young? George attempted to scramble away on all fours but was pinned by Dreq’s claws while the dragon considered the idea. It was an amusing thought. From what he’d seen, the boy didn’t seem to have family or close friends in the village, which would make him a lot easier to control. Plus, admittedly, he was uniquely attractive, in a way. He was delicate and pretty, even if his personality could use some work. 

“On second thought, I've decided it's your lucky day.”  
“Wh-what…?” asked a bewildered George.  
“I’m in need of a mate. And I’ve decided you are gonna fill that role.”  
George did not entirely understand. To be fair, he was still pulling his wits back together after his very near-death experience. He could only gaze up with an expression of utter stupefaction.  
“I know, I know. Dragon with a human mate, seems weird doesn’t it? A little insulting for me, especially. But it’s not my choice, believe me.”  
“Your mate?! You want me to be your mate?!” He was indignant. The mate of some church-invading animal? It was an absurd thought.  
“Hey boy, you can be my bitch or my lunch. Your choice.”  
The paleness of George’s skin made the brilliant bloom of his blush all the more noticeable.  
“Why should I choose? Both sound like shi-... bad options to me.”  
Sparks flared out from Dreq’s nostrils in frustration. How stupid could this boy be? He was going to have to be further convinced.  
“If you refuse, maybe I’ll have to burn your little village to the ground then.”  
“You wouldn’t. The people would fight back! We defeated your kind once, we could do it again.”  
“Maybe. But how much fucking damage do you think I could do before then? I could certainly turn your precious church into a pile of ash.”  
George glared with a fury that was really unwarranted for his current position. But then he shut his eyes, breathed out, and calmed himself.  
“If this is the fate God has set out to me, to be betrothed to a foul-mouthed beast to save my people and my home, then so be it. I accept my fate knowing God is with me.”  
Dreq rolled his eyes. Oh great, the boy has a martyr-complex. Regardless, it seemed his search for a mate was over. 

The squeal of a swine in the distance signaled that Dreq’s errand-boy was returning. It would be inconvenient to have him walk in on this scene, so it was about time to wrap things up.  
“Alright, George. You’re mine now, got it? I’ve got things to do so you can fuck off. Come back tomorrow morning and I’ll fill you in on your new duties as my mate. Just remember, one single fucking word about this to anyone and you and this church will be the first to go up in smoke.” 

George was feeling a lot of things at the moment. He was still kicking himself for having the stupid pride to go and announce his plans to the dragon before telling anyone. He’d envisioned this all going very differently. He’d done all that research, sorted through all those historical records, and he’d blown his chance. He’d blown his chance to be the hero who banished the demon. He’d hoped it would be his ticket to finally being liked by his fellow villagers. But he’d blown it and now he was staring down the snout of a dragon being threatened into mateship? And yet, much as he hated this heathen foul-mouthed dragon, he really did feel like this could be God’s calling to him. If the will of the lord was for him to be a martyr, so be it. And of course, if he happened to get out of this alive… the townsfolk would HAVE TO adore him as a saint for what he’d suffered. So with a strange mix of dread and acceptance, he resigned himself to whatever this was, until he figured out how to defeat this dragon, that is. 

He was halfway out the door to scurry home when he remembered he didn’t exactly have a home to get home to.  
“Actually…” He said, sheepishly turning back to face Dreq, “If I’m going along with this...could I...could I stay here? In the church?  
Dreq laughed, “Ha! Absolutely not. I’m not sharing space with a squeaky little mammal. You have your own home. I’ll tell you when you’re needed.”  
“I DID have a home,” he said in a flash of anger, “I lived here! Until you came along.”  
“Well it’s not my job to house you.”  
“Aren’t I your mate? Doesn’t that mean you have to keep me out of the cold?”  
“A mouthy little bitch of a mate you’re turning out to be. Just stay with one of the other humans.”  
“I have been… but they uh… don’t like me very much in town. I always just stayed here in the church before.”  
“Well I don’t like you very much either,” Dreq thought, but he didn’t say it. Much as he wanted to keep his domain pest-free, it wasn’t a bad idea to keep this boy around to keep an eye on him. Besides, he could hear the swine entering the churchyard. Time to wrap this up.  
“Fine.” he snorted, “but keep quiet and don’t disturb my naps.”  
“I’ll get my things then,” George said, before dashing out the door. 

He passed the poor guy tasked with the demon’s feeding on the church’s front steps. He was tugging along a sickly looking sow.  
“Hey! Pink-eye! What the hell where you doing in there?!” He hissed, grabbing George by the arm.  
“I uh…-”  
“You can’t be going in there! You're gonna get us all cursed by that monster!”  
It took every ounce of willpower he had to bite his tongue and not immediately inform this dope as to what was really going on.  
“Sorry, I just thought another exorcism would work.”  
“Stupid! Drop the holier-than-thou stuff and use your brains.” He huffed before dragging the sow the rest of the way inside.

George wondered if he shouldn’t just leave town and let the dragon do what he wanted with the town. But it was a long walk to the closest city and he barely had more than the clothes on his back. Besides, it wouldn’t be the righteous path. As he walked back into town to retrieve his few other robes and holy books, he clutched the prayer beads around his neck. He was still reeling from all that had happened and only now, in the sobriety of a cold walk in the snow, was realizing the enormity of what he’d agreed to. He clutched his beads and prayed. Usually, he prayed loudly, so others would hear his devotion and piety, but now he kept his beads to his chest and his words barely a whisper. 

He prayed that whatever Dreq had planned, it didn’t hurt too much.


End file.
